The City Council’s Land Use, Housing and Transportation Committee voted yesterday to support looking into making urban chickens legal in Richmond.

Richard Hammack, 51, who lives in the Fan, said he was first exposed to backyard hens during a trip to Raleigh, N.C., one of many U.S. cities that have eased restrictions on keeping chickens in urban areas.

“I got it in my head that would be a great thing to do,” he said, adding that his two young daughters pressed him to get the chickens.

Hammack kept three chickens in his yard unbeknownst to his neighbors until one happened to be on a ladder overlooking his coops. That neighbor called Animal Care and Control.